India

New Delhi, Oct 14 (IANS) The overwhelming popularity and ratings of Prime Minister Narendra Modi seem to be negating all the anti-incumbency sentiments of voters in Himachal Pradesh where elections have been scheduled for November 12.

This was revealed by a CVoter opinion poll conducted on behalf of ABP News across the state during September and October.

Three results of the exclusive opinion poll stand out. The rise is anger with the performance of the state government. As many as 45.5 per cent of the respondents stated that they are angry and want to change the government.

Less than half of that, or about 22 per cent said they are not happy with the BJP government and want to change it. Similarly, 36.6 per cent of the voters rate the performance of the state government as good while 34.6 per cent rate it as poor.

Then again, results of the exclusive CVoter survey for ABP News show that while 37.6 per cent of respondents rate the performance of Chief Minister Jairam Thakur as good, as many as 33.7 per cent rated his performance as poor.

In most elections, these numbers would have resulted in high probabilities of the state government being ousted during elections because of high anti-incumbency sentiments.

Yet, the CVoter opinion poll reveals that the BJP is slated to win 46 per cent of the vote share while the Congress is projected to win 35.2 per cent with the Aam Aadmi Party managing 6.3 per cent. The projected gap between the BJP and Congress vote share is more than 10 per cent, it was just about 7 per cent in the previous elections in 2017.

The projected seats for the BJP are 42 while that for the Congress are 24, giving the former a comfortable majority in a house of 68 members.

The primary reason for this is the enduring popularity of Modi. While 64.3 per cent of respondents rated the performance of the Prime Minister as good, only 19.4 per cent rated it as poor. This is reminiscent of elections held in another hill state Uttarakhand in early 2022 where strong ant-incumbency sentiments against the BJP state government were negated by the Modi factor.

The actual results will be known on December 10.

--IANS
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New Delhi, Oct 14 (IANS) The Supreme Court will hear on Saturday a plea by Maharashtra government challenging the Bombay High Court's Nagpur bench order, acquitting former Delhi University professor G.N. Saibaba in an alleged Maoist links case.

A bench comprising Justices M.R. Shah and Bela M. Trivedi will hear the matter.

As Solicitor General Tushar Mehta mentioned the appeal before a bench of Justices D.Y. Chandrachud and Hima Kohli and sought urgent listing of the case, as, in all likelihood, the respondents may be released from the jail, it directed the case to be listed before an appropriate bench after the Chief Justice provides his administrative approval.

"At this stage, we deem it appropriate to mention that the proceedings have been mentioned before this since the bench presided over by the Chief Justice has risen for the day. The Solicitor General states that he will move an application before the Registry for obtaining administrative directions of Hon'ble the Chief Justice for listing of the Special Leave Petition tomorrow (15.10.2022)", said the top court, in its order.

Earlier in the day, the Bombay High Court' Nagpur bench acquitted former Delhi University professor Saibaba and five others in an alleged Maoist links and conspiracy case.

A division bench of Justices Rohit Deo and Anil Pansare acquitted Mahesh K. Tirki, Hem Keshawdatt Mishra, Prashant Rahi, Vijay Nan Tirki and Pandur Pora Narote who died in August this year.

Earlier, the court had allowed their appeals against conviction and life sentences awarded under the UAPA provisions.

Saibaba, who suffers from a polio-related paralysis and is bound to a wheelchair, had previously filed a plea seeking suspension of his sentence on medical grounds, saying he is also suffering from multiple ailments, but it was rejected.

Currently in Nagpur Central Jail, Saibaba is likely to be freed soon unless required in any other case. All the accused, arrested in 2014, were tried under various sections of IPC and UAPA and sentenced to life imprisonment by the Gadchiroli Sessions Court in March 2017, for links with the banned Maoist groups, charges of waging war against the nation, conspiracy, among others.

--IANS
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By Vishal Gulati
Shimla, Oct 14 (IANS) The political landscape in the cool environs of Himachal Pradesh heated up with the Election Commission on Friday announcing the poll schedule for the 68-member Assembly - polling on November 12 and counting of ballots on December 8.



Political observers told IANS the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has managed an edge over its seemingly somnolent rival Congress by already launching a statewide campaign with a back-to-back public meetings by Prime Minister Narendra Modi and party's national leadership comprising J.P. Nadda and Anurag Thakur.

Congress leader Priyanka Gandhi Vadra on Friday formally launched the party's election campaign after paying obeisance at Maa Shoolini Temple in Solan town. She addressed the Parivartan Pratigya Rally.

The fledgling Aam Aadmi Party (AAP), it seems, is attempting to conquer the state with an army without a general.

So far, the party in power in the national capital and neighbouring Punjab has not been able to rope in any prominent leader to head the team in the Hill state.

Political pundits believe the situation is not very different from Punjab where the party had only Bhagwant Mann at the helm of affairs. But it may not work in Himachal where the political parties almost always announce the Chief Ministerial candidate's name well before the polls.

The Congress is also dithering over the Chief Ministerial face in the absence of its stalwart and six-time Chief Minister Virbhadra Singh.

With the passing away of Virbhadra Singh, who literally 'ruled' the political landscape single-handedly for almost six decades, the somnolent Congress seems fractured and divided in his absence. No other leader enjoys the mass appeal and popularity that he had.

Political observers believe the BJP, which is facing anti-incumbency, has somehow managed an edge over its rival Congress by making it clear that the party will go to the polls under the leadership of first-time Chief Minister Jai Ram Thakur. Most probably, the party is likely to retain him for the post, if the BJP comes back to power.

The Election Commission announced that the state would vote for a new assembly on November 12 and the counting would be held on December 8. The term of the assembly ends on January 8 next year.

While Chief Minister Thakur has already carried out a whirlwind tour of the state ahead of the announcement of polls, the Congress is banking on its Central top leadership, with minimal chance of Rahul Gandhi touring the state owing to his preoccupation with 'Bharat Jodo Yatra'.

Its state senior leaders -- Mukesh Agnihotri, Kaul Singh Thakur, Sukhvinder Sukhu, Harsh Vardhan, Sudhir Sharma and Asha Kumari -- are concentrating on their respective seats only.

The BJP had won a majority in the 2017 Assembly polls with 44 seats in the 68-member Assembly.

Sounding the poll bugle with an emphasis the government "lays the foundation stone of a project and inaugurates itself", the Prime Minister on Thursday launched projects related to pharmaceuticals, education, railways and rural roads with saying these will have positive impact on the region's progress.

And also with a message that this became a reality with the state's double-engine government that has ensured "approvals for projects and their fast progress".

This was the Prime Minister's ninth visit to the state in the five years and second in almost a week.

Earlier, Modi inaugurated development works and laid foundation stones of over Rs 3,650 crore spread across various sectors, comprising AIIMS Bilaspur, on October 5. On that day, Modi became the first Prime Minister to pay obeisance to Kullu Valley's chief deity Lord Raghunath in the Dussehra festivity in Kullu town amidst the presence of nearly 300 deities.

Unlike her husband Virbhadra Singh, who had a direct connect even at the grassroots, Congress state unit chief Pratibha Singh, who has never contested the Assembly poll, is spearheading the campaign by banking on its promise to bring back the Old Pension Scheme (OPS) that will benefit 225,000 employees, a crucial vote bank.

However, the "divided" Congress is struggling to speak with one voice over key issues to put the government in the dock over corruption, deteriorating law and order situation, rising debt, an education scam of selling more than 45,000 fake degrees and the constable recruitment question paper leak that was sold for Rs 6 lakh to Rs 8 lakh.

The only saving grace for the Congress is induction of former BJP chief Khimi Ram, once a close confidante of former Chief Minister and BJP veteran Prem Kumar Dhumal. He served as a legislator from Banjar assembly constituency twice from 2003 to 2012.

Also the Congress managed to rope in BJP leader Indu Verma, who is the wife of late Rakesh Verma, a three-time legislator. The family has a base in Shimla district.

But leaders foresee more trouble in the Congress with the granting of tribal status by the Central government to nearly 2.50 lakh voters settled mainly in Sirmaur district, a demand pending for five decades.

The state party leadership fears an exodus of its leaders, comprising two sitting lawmakers -- Harsh Vardhan and Vinay Kumar, an HPCC working president, who have been "hobnobbing" with the BJP.

The Hatti community, who got the Scheduled Tribe status this month, is based mainly in the 133 panchayats dotting the trans-Giri area, which is part of the Shimla (reserved) seat.

Union Home Minister Amit Shah is coming on Saturday to attend a thanks-giving rally in Sataun in Sirmaur district being organised by the Hatti community.

State BJP President Suresh Kashyap said the people of the Hatti community are extremely happy on getting the tribal status after a long struggle of 55 years.

"This rally will be landmark rally as the people of Hatti will be taking part in massive numbers," Kashyap, who also belongs to the area dominated by the Hattis, told IANS.

The BJP in the 2019 Lok Sabha elections had won all the four seats of Himachal that saw 72.25 per cent polling.

(Vishal Gulati can be contacted at vishal.g@ians.in)
--IANS
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New Delhi, Oct 14 (IANS) Prime Minister Narendra Modi will virtually address the inaugural session of All India Conference of Law Ministers and Law Secretaries on Saturday (October 15).

The two-day conference is being hosted by the Ministry of Law and Justice at Ekta Nagar, Gujarat.

The objective of the conference is to provide a common forum for the policy makers to discuss issues related to the Indian legal and judicial system, an official statement said.

The conference will witness discussions on topics like alternative dispute resolution mechanisms such as arbitration and mediation for quick and affordable justice, upgrading overall legal infrastructure, removing obsolete laws, improving access to justice, reducing pendency of cases and ensuring speedy disposal of matters.

The states will be able to share their best practices, exchange new ideas and improve their mutual cooperation through this conference, the statement said.

--IANS
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New Delhi, Oct 14 (IANS) The Supreme Court on Friday junked a plea seeking to declare Delhi minister and Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) legislator Satyendar Jain as "a person with unsound mind" and disqualify him from the Assembly on this ground, and imposed a fine of Rs 20,000 on the petitioner.

A bench of Justices Sanjay Kishan Kaul and A.S. Oka said the plea filed by a Delhi resident is frivolous and dismissed the petition with a fine of Rs 20,000.

"It is such a misconceived and frivolous petition that it deserves to be dismissed with a cost of Rs 20,000," it said.

Jain has been in judicial custody in a money laundering case since May 30.

Petitioner Ashish Kumar Srivastava's lawyer contended before the bench that Jain had told the ED officers during questioning that he lost his memory due to Covid-19. The counsel added that the AAP MLA stands disqualified under Article 191(1)(b) of the Constitution which provides for disqualification of a lawmaker who is of unsound mind.

The top court said Jain did not say that he has lost his memory but he perhaps said he doesn't remember a few things and pointed out that there is a difference, and also, Covid presented a scenario where people were affected.

It asked the petitioner to deposit the penalty within a week, adding "It (plea) is so ridiculous that we must ask you to pay the cost."

The petitioner moved the apex court challenging an order passed by the Delhi High Court in August dismissing his petition. The high court noted that the Code of Criminal Procedure caters to all contingencies and it is for the prosecution/court to take appropriate steps in accordance with law.

Jain has been accused of having laundered money through four companies linked to him and where he was holding shares.

--IANS
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New Delhi, Oct 14 (IANS) The Supreme Court on Friday slammed producer Ekta Kapoor over objectionable content in her web series "XXX".

A bench of Justices Ajay Rastogi and C.T. Ravikumar said: "Something has to be done. You are polluting the minds of the young generation of this country..."

The bench added that the OTT (Over the Top) content was available to all and questioned her counsel as to "what kind of choice are you providing to the people?"

The bench made these observations after senior advocate Mukul Rohatgi, representing Kapoor, contended a plea was moved before the Patna High Court but chances are slim that the matter will be taken up soon.

At this, the bench said: "You are polluting the minds of youngsters."

Rohatgi, however, submitted that the apex court had earlier granted protection to Kapoor in a similar matter and there is freedom of choice in the country. He further added that content is subscription based.

The bench said it does not appreciate that every time, a plea is moved before the apex court and added that a cost will be imposed for filing such a petition. It asked Rohatgi to convey this to his client and emphasised that the apex court works for those who don't have voices.

The top court was hearing a plea by Kapoor against the arrest warrants issued against her for allegedly insulting soldiers and hurting the sentiments of their families in the web series on her OTT platform ALTBalaji.

The bench observed: "We have seen the order and we have our reservations."

The apex court has also kept the matter pending before it and recommended a local lawyer should be engaged to inform about the status of hearing in the high court.

A trial court in Bihar's Begusarai had issued the warrant on a 2020 complaint lodged by Shambhu Kumar, an ex-serviceman, who alleged that "XXX" (season-2) featured several objectionable scenes in connection with the soldier's wife.

--IANS
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Varanasi, Oct 14 (IANS) In a jolt to Hindu petitioners, a Varanasi court, on Friday, rejected the petition seeking carbon dating of the purported 'Shivling' found in the Gyanvapi mosque complex.

Hindu petitioners said that they would study the verdict and then decide whether to approach the high court.

The petitioners had claimed that the 'Shivling' found in the 'wuzu khana' or reservoir of the mosque during survey work on May 16 was part of the property.

The Hindu side demanded carbon dating and other scientific tests of the Shivling-like structure.

Carbon dating is a scientific process that ascertains the age of an archaeological object or archaeological finds.

The Gyanvapi Masjid committee had opposed the carbon dating plea filed by the Hindu side.

Last month, four of the five Hindu women petitioners filed a plea seeking "scientific investigation" on the 'Shivling'.

They contended that it was necessary to determine its age. The women have claimed that ancient idols of Hindu Gods and Goddesses are located inside the mosque.

The mosque committee objected to scientific investigation, arguing that the case was about worshipping at a shrine inside the mosque and had nothing to do with its structure. The object being called a 'Shivling' is actually a "fountain", they argued.

Last week, the court asked if the purported 'Shivling' can be made a part of the case and whether a scientific investigation can actually be ordered.

Vishnu Shankar Jain, lead advocate for Hindu women, told reporters that he tried to convince the court on both counts.

"We said two things - that in our prayer we asked for rights to pray before visible and invisible deities inside the mosque complex. The Shivling was earlier covered by water and when the water was removed it became a visible deity and so it is part of the suit," he said.

On September 12, the Varanasi district judge dismissed a challenge by the mosque committee that argued that the case by the Hindu women seeking permission for year-long worship inside the mosque complex has no legal standing.

Their challenge was rejected on all three counts they cited. The most important of these is the 1991 law, which freezes the status of a place of worship as it existed on August 15, 1947. The petitioners do not want ownership, just the right to worship, the court ruled.

Earlier this year, a lower court in Varanasi ordered the filming of the centuries-old mosque based on the women's petition. The videography report, controversially leaked by the petitioners, claimed a 'Shivling' was found in a pond used for 'Wuzu' or the mandatory purification rituals before Muslim prayers.

The Gyanvapi mosque, located in Varanasi, the constituency of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, is one of the several mosques that Hindu hardliners believe were built on the ruins of temples.

It was one of the three temple-mosque rows, besides Ayodhya and Mathura, which the BJP raised in the eighties and nineties, that gained national prominence.

--IANS
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Kolkata, Oct 14 (IANS) The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) is in the process of establishing links between two much-talked-about financial embezzlement scams in West Bengal -- the multi-crore West Bengal School Service Commission (WBSSC) recruitment irregularities and the cattle smuggling case.

The CBI officials on Friday summoned for questioning one Kajal Roy and one Rohit Singh in connection with the cattle smuggling scam. Incidentally, the CBI sources said that while Kajal Roy is the wife of Prasanna Roy, the middleman arrested by the central agency sleuths in the WBSSC scam, Rohit Singh is one of his cousins. Kajal Roy also happens to be the niece of former West Bengal education minister and Trinamool Congress secretary general, Partha Chatterjee, who is currently in judicial custody for his alleged involvement in the WBSSC scam.

To recall, the CBI sleuths, on August 27 this year, arrested Prasanna Roy. CBI sources said that during the course of investigation in the cattle smuggling scam, their officers have come across a number of shell companies, which were floated with the purpose of diverting scam proceeds to different channels. "After thoroughly examining different documents and papers of these companies, the involvement of Kajal Roy and Rohit Singh in these entities evolved," a CBI official said.

After his arrest in August, the CBI sleuths were surprised by the meteoric northward graph of Roy's financial fortune between 2014 and 2018, the time slot when the teachers' recruitment scam took place.

He started as a small-time house painting contractor and slowly extended his business in other spheres like holiday resorts and even tea gardens in north Bengal. However, the sources of the funds through which Roy funded his businesses were highly mysterious. The CBI sleuths then procured documents relating to his ownership of a number of flats in and around Kolkata.

Roy also used to run a car-rental business and his major clients on this count were a number of top officials of WBSSC, some of whom are currently in judicial custody for their alleged involvement in the teacher's recruitment scam.

He also used to pose as a representative of the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO as well as the "International Peoples' Alliance of the World" in the social media.

Besides, Roy claimed to be the chief financial advisor to World Hindu Struggle Committee, a self-styled organisation claiming to be a dedicated international team fighting to raise its voice against fundamentalism, terrorism, and inhuman groups.

--IANS
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New Delhi, Oct 14 (IANS) Vistara airline on Friday announced the addition of a new route to its international network with four weekly flights between Pune and Singapore, starting December .

The airline will operate its state-of-the-art A321neo aircraft with a three-class configuration on the route as it strengthens its existing connectivity between India and the 'Lion City'. The airline also recently announced that it will fly daily between Mumbai and Kathmandu starting November 15, enabling convenient onward connections to popular international destinations like Dubai, Jeddah, Abu Dhabi and more.

Vinod Kannan, Chief Executive Officer, Vistara, said, "We are very excited to be able to launch the long-awaited connection between Pune and Singapore. Singapore is a key market for business and leisure travel from various points in India and we are glad that the new route will offer enhanced connectivity to our customers.

"We are also delighted to introduce another international route between Mumbai and Kathmandu thereby offering the customers the option to avail seamless connections beyond Mumbai across our domestic as well as international network. We continue to densify our network for the convenience of our customers and offer them the experience of flying with India's best airline."

TATA SIA Airlines Limited, known by the brand name Vistara, is a 51:49 joint venture between Tata Sons Private Limited and Singapore Airlines Limited (SIA). Vistara commenced its commercial operations on January 9, 2015, with an aim to set new standards in the aviation industry in India and currently it connects destinations across India and abroad. The airline has a fleet of 53 aircraft, including 41 Airbus A320, five Airbus A321neo, five Boeing 737-800NG and two Boeing 787-9 Dreamliner aircraft and has flown more than 35 million customers since starting operations.

--IANS
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New Delhi, Oct 14 (IANS) To combat the degrading air quality in Delhi-NCR, which is likely to worsen in the coming days, 10 pollution hotspots have been identified in Ghaziabad.

The officials concerned have been directed to ensure strict implementation of Graded Response Action Plan (GRAP)implemented across Delhi-NCR since October 1.

Vasundhara, Indirapuram, Loni, Sahibabad, Raj Nagar Extension, Meerut Road, Bhopura Delhi Border, GT Road, Sanjay Nagar and Siddharth Vihar have been identified as pollution hotspots.

As per the rules, burning garbage or keeping construction material in the open attract fines.

The city's AQI was recorded as moderate till Thursday.

Vasundhara, Indirapuram, Loni, Sahibabad, Raj Nagar Extension, Meerut Road, Bhopura Delhi Border, GT Road, Sanjay Nagar and Siddharth Vihar have been identified as pollution hotspots.

According to a survey conducted in the past, Ghaziabad has been the most polluted district of the country, which is why keen attention is being given to it.


--IANS
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